Eviction drive on at Balijhari slum in Paradip. Telegraph picture

Paradip, June 19: Unlawful structures that had sprouted in slum clusters on the fringes of Paradip port town were knocked down today to evict encroachers.

Despite protest from the squatters, the Paradip Port Trust carried out the exercise to reclaim the port land from unlawful occupiers.

The demolition of dwelling houses and other permanent structures was carried out in Balijhara slum colony.

Contrary to anticipated show of resistance and protest, the drive was entirely incident free. Kujang tehsildar Rabindranath Kanhra said armed police had been pressed into service for hassle-free completion of the exercise.

Around 10 acres have been encroached in the colony. The eviction was carried out in pursuance of the public premises act and the major ports act. The encroachers were served eviction order long ago. Port trust estate officer K. Thirumoolar said they had defied the order and refused to vacate the land.

The port trust needs land as various infrastructure development projects are lined up for execution. The reclaimed land will be put to use for port development plan, he said.

About a year ago, the slum settlements had been bulldozed in Gholpada colony. The move to evict illegal settlers in a number of unauthorised colonies met with failure in the past as slum dwellers offered resistance.

Dearth of land is a major impediment for the infrastructure growth of the port town. “The acquired land could be judiciously used for public utility and infrastructure development,” said port trust chairman Sudhansu Sekhar Mishra. The port township houses over 75,000 migrant people, living unlawfully in the slum clusters.